Ray Ison, Professor in Systems at the UK Open University since 1994, is a member of the Applied Systems Thinking in Practice Group. From 2008-15 he also developed and ran the Systemic Governance Research Program at Monash University, Melbourne. In this blog he reflects on contemporary issues from a systemic perspective.

Wolff offers a critique of academic practice, implying that more than institutional innovation is needed. Consideration of his own reflexive praxis is, however, missing from the article. In critiques of this type it would be good to see a shift from the abstract to the embodied and personal.

"The eSTEeM project was an 18-month systemic inquiry beginning January
2014 initiated by a core team of 5 academics associated with the
production and presentation of the postgraduate programme in Systems
Thinking in Practice (STiP). The inquiry comprised a series of online
interviews over two phases, and a workshop held in London Regional
Office in May 2015. There were 33 interviews in total, including
interviews with 10 postgraduate students undertaking core modules
associated with the STiP programme, 8 STiP alumni, 8 employers of STiP
alumni, and 7 Associate Lecturers teaching on the STiP programme. The
one-day workshop involved 41 participants including members of the core
eSTEeM team, all interviewees from both initial phases, along with
other special guests invited on the basis of their involvement, support
and interest for the STiP programme.The project aimed to design a learning system for transforming the
‘threats’ of a gap between postgraduate study experiences and post-study
work experiences into ‘opportunities’ for radical pedagogic adaptation
and (re)design. One such course where the gap is evident is with the
postgraduate suite of qualifications in Systems Thinking in Practice
(STiP) launched at the OU in 2010."

Monday, April 09, 2018

"Appy birthday

Friday was the first birthday of the apprenticeship levy, with a
veritable fiesta of events to mark the occasion. However, the
government’s target of three million starts by 2020 looks seriously at
risk, despite claims that all is going “as planned”.

Challenges include demonstrating the benefits to prospective applicants
and their families, meeting employer needs, and delays getting new
apprenticeships approved. One major employer, IBM, described the process
as “incredibly difficult” with “bizarre decisions” and “not a good
experience at all”. That same employer also said they have “shifted away
from graduates ... which is possibly an unintended consequence".

There are also issues in demonstrating the returns to firms of taking on
apprentices – simulations published by the Education Policy Institute
to estimate the costs and benefits suggest that most firms would only
break even if apprentice pay is close to minimum wage, and that
higher-level apprenticeships taken up at a later age could offer lower
returns for both apprentices and their employers.

From a standing start, many universities are starting to offer degree
apprenticeships, which Gerry Berragan of the Institute for
Apprenticeships said he was supportive of. He also said management
degrees are a "perfectly respectable" way to use levy funds and address
productivity challenges.

Time will tell if the government, the post-18 review, and OfS can create
a coherent, system-wide offer that includes different routes and
levels. With unspent levy funds and stubborn skills gaps, it’s likely
that more enterprising HEIs will continue to seize this opportunity."